Letters to the editor for Saturday, January 19, 2013

Saturday

Jan 19, 2013 at 12:01 AM

His incorrect, inflammatory, cavalier, derogatory name-calling for years indicates a contempt for many of our citizens and leaders that should not be tolerated.

I have lived in Daytona Beach for over 30 years and have seen several chiefs of police come and go, and certainly none more colorful than the present one, Mike Chitwood. I am very concerned over the matter with John Hinton, prominent local citizen and owner of the John's Appliance City business. I believe the chief's disrespectful comment calling him a "slumlord" is part of a pattern of disrespect to our citizenry for years that should be addressed. Whether it's referring to many of our citizens as "scumbags," the former president of Bethune-Cookman University as "an inept leader," or Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson as "not a real cop," his incorrect, inflammatory, cavalier, derogatory name-calling for years indicates a contempt for many of our citizens and leaders that should not be tolerated. One wonders what his real thoughts are toward those he serves and who pay his salary. I don't believe this kind of social commentary and behavior could be found as a duty in the chief's job description. Certainly creating and maintaining a good rapport with community safety, education and business leaders is a very important part of his job description and the chief of police needs to not alienate these leaders. Such behavior is not complementary to his position and undermines the image of our police department and our city. Curiously, other area chiefs of police seem to be quite effective in their positions without this kind of derogatory behavior. Mike seems to enjoy patrol duties. Perhaps this is where his real skill base lies and should be reassigned accordingly.KIM ROWLANDDaytona BeachRowland is founder of the Volusia Property Owners Association.

We spent a lot of time and money to restore the Daytona Beach Pier and surrounding area. It would be a shame to degrade this effort with steel towers and people upside-down, screaming. Please keep the Slingshot in the amusement zone.DAVID ANDERSONDaytona Beach

A friend sought to admonish me for my "unrealistic" approach to gun control, stating that he will not allow me to stand behind him as he defends himself against a madman firing into a crowd. That got me to thinking. I thought of the Aurora, Colo., movie-theater massacre, of the 12 people killed and the others either wounded or exposed to an irrational shooter. If my friend had been there, would some of those 12 have survived? Maybe, but at what cost? Picture, if you will, a dark theater and a madman opening up on the audience. Then picture hundreds of people exercising their Second Amendment rights by carrying loaded guns into the theater. Finally, picture these people reacting to gunshots and screams by pulling out their guns and firing at the madman (or at least his gun flashes, since it was too dark to see clearly). Since it is likely no one in the theater was expecting this, it is fair to assume some confusion. You have hundreds of people firing at a madman, or at least thinking they are. In reality, they are confused at best and firing at gun flashes. Hundreds of Second Amendment advocates shooting off deadly bullets in a crowded theater, without knowing for sure who they were shooting at! And this is without taking into account that the Aurora shooter set off a canister of what might have been tear gas before beginning his rampage, thus making it virtually impossible to know bad guy from good. It seems fair to say that more than 12 people would have been killed. More "good" people carrying guns will not make us safer. Quite the contrary. It will put all of us, good and bad alike, in greater peril.NOEL MUNSONPonce Inlet

In reply to the letter "Blaming the wrong culprit," of Jan. 14, I would like to call to attention the following: Social Security is paid into by employees and employers, Medicare is paid into by employed people. The G.I. Bill, now known as the Montgomery G.I Bill, is paid into by new service members — of which few really get to use it. Veterans' benefits are for those who put their lives on the line for this country and government. (Did you?) The above should not be called government entitlement programs, because they were bought and paid for by the citizens of this country and mismanaged by the government. All the rest are government entitlements. People should get their facts straight before they spout off. Yes, I served in the military, and paid into Social Security and Medicare. I do not believe the letter writer was well-informed.EDWARD KENTDeltona

"Increasing America's debt weakens us domestically and internationally. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt limit." This was then-Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in a March 16, 2006, floor speech explaining his decision to oppose a request to increase the federal debt limit, then set at $8.2 trillion.HARRY HARRISNew Smyrna Beach

I suggest that Christy Lemire, the Associated Press critic who evaluated "Les Miz" go back and sit through the entire musical, now that it has won a Golden Globe. If she is not qualified to evaluate musicals, next time she should say nothing. Her rating was so far off the mark, that if it wasn't for all the favorable comments I received, I may not have gone to see this excellent movie — which I'm sure will receive a number of Academy Awards. JOAN D. KUCHCHICKIPort Orange